


In a Bind... Literally

by sighmonk



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: A little bit of Klance, Coming Out, Fluff, Gen, Kuron screwed with Keith's mind, Lance to the rescue, M/M, Support, Team Bonding, Trans Male Character, slight angst, trans Matt, trans keith
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-02
Updated: 2018-03-02
Packaged: 2019-03-26 03:50:29
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,146
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13849479
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sighmonk/pseuds/sighmonk
Summary: Despite Shiro's attempts to convince Keith to do so, the fiery young paladin still hasn't told the rest of his teammates that he's trans. Normally, this wouldn't be an issue... were he not on the verge of passing out due to his binder being on too long and being much too tight.And with Shiro and Matt - the only two knowing about his situation - currently missing and on a mission respectively, Keith is in a bind. And in a binder.What ensues is the inevitable.





	In a Bind... Literally

At first, Keith barely noticed it: the dull burn of pain coming from his right side, making things only a bit more uncomfortable than they usually would have been. He thought nothing of it, as he had plenty of days where the pain was worse than usual - especially when he knew he overdid it, which, he had. Furthermore, he seemed to be in a constant state of pain since becoming a paladin of Voltron, where the pressures of physical exertion were nearly constant. At least, he didn't think anything of that ever-present pain until Allura pulled him aside after dinner.

"Keith," she began, forcing him to help with the dishes after everyone else off had gone off to their rooms. "Your breathing is very shallow."

A pained expression showed clearly on his face, though he avoided the princess' gaze at all costs as he gathered Hunk's plate. "It's just been a long day."

"We haven't done anything today," the princess offered up, shoving her stack of plates in the altean-dishwasher-thing.

"I literally trained for three hours," Keith shot back, mimicking his actions to that of Allura's. He didn't tell her that he spent an hour after his training lying on his back trying to catch his breath, and another hour after that having Lotor help him stretch himout because it hurt too much to do on his own.

Closing the cabinet, Allura slid her finger across the holographic control panel, tapping a few buttons before it's cycle began. She turned back to Keith, her gaze meeting his, her sympathetic eyes unusually dark.

"I know Shiro isn't here to tell you this right now," she said, her voice low as she began. Clone Shiro had been found out not too long ago, and Keith still wasn't taking it well, as was evident by the small cringe he gave at his best friend's name. Allura continued, placing her hand firmly on his shoulder. "So I'll tell you in his place. I don't know what he meant by it, but he always said, 'take a break before you break yourself'. I understand what it means generally, but it means something else for you, right?"

The black paladin looked away, no longer able to look into the princess' eyes, especially as she said the words Shiro has told him since he was only sixteen years old and fresh into the garrison. He nodded slightly.

"I won't lie, I would like to know why he said it," she said, a sigh escaping her lips. "But it doesn't really matter, especially when you look this miserable. Heed his words, even if he's not here."

With that, she took her leave, Keith standing alone in the brightly lit dining room of the Castle of Lions as she went, a pain in his side and a chuckle escaping his throat.

"It's not that easy, princess," he muttered to himself, grabbing a water glass from one of the lower cabinets and moving to the sink, pouring a bit of water into it. He quickly took a sip, letting it seep down his throat as he turned to leave the kitchen as well, walking the opposite direction from Allura and heading to his room.

Through the halls, he walked quickly, hoping to avoid anyone else who might notice his breathing. He already had enough suspicion on him from Pidge and Lance; he didn't need anyone else looking at him and observing his movements or whatever the hell else they were trying to figure out. He had caught them a number of times snooping through his clothes, hanging out in Black's hangar, watching his movements with great concentration: he had initially put it all down to them looking for any of his Galra traits, but it had gotten far beyond annoying at this point, and Keith was afraid they would find out soon.

No, in the entire Earth-year the humans had been in space, Keith told none of them. Shiro knew of course, but to the rest of them, he had only ever been a guy. To himself he'd only ever been a guy, which was probably the reason he was able to get through the Voltron Mind-Meld thing they did when they were first becoming paladins. There was no reason the rest of the team needed to know that wasn't the case.

Stepping into his room, Keith set the glass of water down next to his bed, throwing his jacket off and watching as it fell on top of the knife his mother gave him. Blade of Marmora. Part of him wished he could go back to them full time instead of being the black paladin. Their suits were so skin-tight that the extra layer of fabric he wore wasn't never necessary, and none of the Galra asked about his anatomy.

Not that he changed around them, but it was easier to be relaxed about some things.

Keith let out a sigh, tossing off his jeans and pulling his black shirt off, trying to avoid the mirror in his room as he grabbed one of Shiro's hoodies off the floor (whatever it was, alien fabrics were so much softer, and Keith greatly appreciated that) and pulling it over his head. He didn't miss seeing it in the mirror, however.

He didn't miss seeing the black tank top, rolled down over his boxers, that clung close to his body like Pidge on a robot. He couldn't miss the slightly different fabric that lined the top part of the tank, which created a more flat shape around his chest. And of course, he couldn't miss how his chest stuck out more than the rest of his skinny form.

Quickly, he pulled the hoodie over his head, jumping onto his bed and leaning back against the pillows. Seeing his binder was the last thing he needed after Allura spoke to him about said article of clothing (though she clearly didn't know he wore it). Sure, he knew he was wearing it: the pain in his ribs and his back wouldn't let him forget, and hadn't let him forget for the last four days. No, he hadn't wanted to see it, not at all. And he certainly didn't want the rest of the team to know, even despite what Shiro had said before he disappeared.

 

* * *

 

"You know Matt is trans, right Keith?" Shiro had asked him on one of his particularly worse days, back when he was curled up in bed, an Altean heating pad pressed against his stomach. Oh course, Keith was wearing Shiro's same hoodie.

Keith stirred slightly, scooting over only a little bit so that Shiro could sit at the end of his bed. "Of course I know that. He started transitioning when he entered the Garrison..."

"And started T when he was eighteen, just like you," Shiro concluded, nodding gently. He nudged Keith to tell him to roll over and look at him, only continuing when the smaller of the two was begrudgingly facing him. "And you never thought any differently of him, did you?"

"Shiro, I know where you're going with this," Keith said, narrowing his eyes and pulling the cover closer to his body. He was in enough pain at the moment; he didn't need the binder to cause extra pain. Of course, that meant hiding under layers of blankets despite the fact that Shiro had known him since they were kids, due to them being cousins, but that was besides the point. "I'm not telling the team that I'm... yeah."

The older man tilted his head, a gentle yet stressed smile on his face. "Keith, no one here is going to think bad of you," Shiro said, voice strained. "Matt is Pidge's brother, and she loves him to death, Hunk wouldn't hurt a fly, and Lance-"

"Would never stop teasing me," Keith snapped, turning to hide back under his covers.

He heard a sigh as Shiro stood up, moving off the bed to crouch down in front of his face, flicking his forehead with his non-metal arm. "You know Lance isn't like that."

He stayed quiet for a moment, but he couldn't deny what he'd said had certainly been too rash... and entirely false. He nodded slowly. "I know he isn't," he admitted, voice low. "I just... I'm... ugh, I just really don't want to tell them."

"I understand," Shiro said, laying a hand on his cousin's shoulder and giving a reassuring rub. "And I don't want you to think I'm trying to force you. I just think the team should know so they can help you if need be."

Keith let out a chuckle. "I'm not sure what they'd be able to do."

At that, Shiro looked surprised. "You're kidding, right?" he asked, amusement and disbelief in his voice. A small smile seemed to form on his face as he listed off the qualities of his teammates. "Pidge, Hunk, and Coran are scientific marvels. They could probably synthesize testosterone so you don't get like this." He gestured to Keith, referencing the current fetal position he was in. "Lance and Hunk are the most sympathetic on the team, not to mention the best cooks, and Allura could also help with... this."

"Shiro, I love you, but if you reference my fucking uterus one more time, that scar won't be the only one on your face," he hissed, smiling despite the fact that he was only half-joking. He softened suddenly, looking away. "I don't need their help, though. You've been there for me since dad left, and you always will be."

Shiro also looked away, not wanting to be the one to remind him how he had disappeared for over a year, or how Matt and Pidge's dad was still missing, or how easy it was to get lost in the vast vacuum of space. Instead, he stood and turned to leave, the room quiet aside from his foot steps and the sliding of the door.

"Just know that you can trust the team if I'm ever not here," he said, voice too loud despite it being barely above a whisper. "And stop wearing your binder at night. Take a break before you break yourself."

And with that, he was gone, leaving Keith on the verge of sleep and with a pain he thought he had forgotten a year prior.

 

* * *

 

That exchange played through his mind a million times since Shiro had gone missing (again) only two months or so ago after the fight with Zarkon, leaving Keith confused and scared when those times of both physical and psychological pain sprung up out of nowhere. He wanted to take the advice of his best friend and only living family member, but his fear outweighed what he knew he needed to do.

And he could only go so much longer without T before his weight distribution reverted to the more feminine figure he had before.

But taking Shiro's advice was easier said than done. Again, he had gone to sleep in his binder, light-headed as he typically got after wearing it for too long, his heart beating out of rythym every few minutes or so. He thought nothing of it until he woke late into the night, unable to breathe.

Keith knew what this was. It had happened once before, back on earth, when he was sixteen and had only been binding for a year. A binder that's too tight mixed with no breaks to breathe fully led to one of the most horrifying events he'd ever gone through, and it was happening again. At the time, he had run to Shiro's room, crying his lungs out until Shiro had ripped the binder off of him, pulling him tightly against his chest and trying to calm him down until he could breathe again.

But here he was. In space, billions of light-years from home.

Without Shiro.

Forcing himself out of bed, Keith rested his arm on the wall as he stumbled against it, trying his best to regain some semblance of balance to little avail. He tried to pull the hoodie off, but in his hazed and panicked state, he couldn't make out any of what was happening. All he knew was that it wasn't coming off, and with the lack of oxygen getting to his brain, he'd pass out in a matter of minutes. His panicking was only making it worse as the oxygen rushed from his lungs.

 _Fuck_ , he thought, stumbling out of his room as the door slid open, using the walls for support. He needed help, and that's all he knew.

"Shiro," he said quietly, the only thing he was able to say before the tears started coming, choking him and making his breathing even more ragged. "Shiro, pl-please..." _Please be right._

Lance's room. He hadn't even realized he'd been walking there until he was banging on the door, choking out the red paladin's name with shaking, tear-filled gasps. He knew it made sense he went there: he trusted Lance more than anyone else on the team, despite their playful rivalry. They had become closer, and Keith saw him as his stability, even if he didn't want to admit it out-loud (which he had, to Lance, but that was another story).

The door slid open to reveal a bleary-eyed Lance- clearly just having woken up - irritation plastered on his face. "What do you want, Kei-" He stopped himself as Keith dropped to the floor, clutching at his chest. He immediately dropped to the floor next to the black paladin, pulling him to a semi-sitting position.

"Keith, what's wrong?" Lance cried, voice already shaking. He'd never seen their leader like this before. Sure, he'd seen Keith cry a million different times (even if they'd both deny it), but never before had he seen Keith in such a state as this. "Hey, buddy, I need you to try and talk to me. Focus real hard for just a minute."

The half-Galra did as he was told, taking a deep breath before he stuttered out, "Can't b-br-breathe." He took another breath, a sob coming with his words as he spoke. "Too tight." His eyes began to flutter close, only for Lance to shake him enough to keep him awake.

"Alright Keith, hold on just a sec," he said as calmly as he could, picking Keith up without a warning. Normally, Keith would have fought this were it any other day, but instead, he curled closer into Lance's chest, still tugging at Shiro's hoodie. It surprised Lance how light Keith actually was, but he said nothing.

He set the older of them down on his bed, glad he hadn't left out any of his video games for once. He settled himself down in front of Keith. "You need help taking this off, right?"

Keith nodded frantically.

Confusion took its place on the red paladin's face. Shiro's hoodie looked pretty huge on Keith, after all; the boxers he was wearing beneath were barely visible. But Lance complied anyways, sitting up on his knees and reaching over to tug the black hoodie off of Keith's body, having to help him lift his arms since his oxygen-deprived brain refused to comply.

Tossing the hoodie on the floor, Lance turned back hoping to see Keith relaxing, but it seemed to be just the opposite. Instead of a shirtless and relaxing Keith, he saw a hunched over, shaking boy with old scars lining the shoulders of his body. He had seen the scars before, the thin white ladders that ran down his arms that were years old, but never before had he seen that tank top, which seemed to get tighter around his chest. He went to reach for it, hesitating.

It looked strangely similar to the sports bra that Pidge wore (and even more similar to her old binder), which he only knew because he would help with the laundry for everyone. Which was why he was so shocked to see the article of clothing: he'd never seen it before.

"Please," Keith choked out, grabbing one if Lance's wrists with his hand. The whole time, he was still panicking, choking from the lack of air. A particularly sharp gasp shook him and his head sunk forward, only stopping himself with the help of Lance's hands catching him before he hit the bed. Keith let out another sob. "T-too tight. Off. J-just don't lo-look..." Another cough shook him and he started to cry harder.

Lance was almost certain he knew what it was now. Giving a swift nod to Keith, he reached over to the slouching man, grabbing the binder from the bottom and rolling it off over Keith's head, which he raised so Lance could pull it off. As soon as his head was out, Keith pushed his chest to the bed, pulling up the blankets with his arms to hide his chest. He let out a massive gasp, followed by quick desperate breaths for air, and it seemed almost like he had just broke the surface after he'd been drowning.

The red paladin leaned over, placing a kiss atop his leader's head - another thing that neither would admit happened quite often. "Keith, buddy. Breathe for me," he whispered, rubbing his hand along Keith's bare back as he dropped the binder onto the floor.

Keith replied with a whine.

"Alright man, breathe with me. Three seconds in, hold three, out five," he said, doing as he said a few times. Keith joined in after a minute, and after his breathing slowed down, Lance gave his back a gentle rub of approval. "Okay Keith, keep breathing like that for a minute. I'll get your hoodie."

"Thanks," Keith replied, his voice quiet, but much stronger and much less shaken now that he was getting air. There were still tears on his face, but he could take care of that in a minute.

Lance nodded and stood, quickly grabbing the black hoodie from off of the ground and hurrying back to the bed, tossing it onto his friend. He sat down close to where he had been, legs hanging over the bed and facing away from Keith.

"Put it on. I'm not looking."

Keith thanked him silently, sitting up to quickly slip the hoodie over him again. While his chest was certainly more visible, the black of the hoodie hid it well, as did the dull lights of the room, which glowed a gentle blue light from different parts of the room. He sat back further on Lance's bed, pulling his knees to his chest. "It's on."

Slowly, Lance turned his head, gazing at Keith up and down. "Don't put your legs right that right know. It restricts breathing. Either lie down or lean against the pillows."

Keith swallowed. "Pillows, I guess..." he mumbled, and Lance immediately sprung to his closet, pulling out a massive bundle of pillows. He put three extra behind Keith's head, letting him lean back while almost sitting up entirely, and giving him a smaller one to hold between his arms. Lance opted for the blanked before sitting down next to Keith, crossing his legs. He could feel Keith's eyes on him, and they just stared at each other for a few minutes in a comfortable silence.

"Keith," Lance said softly. He took a breath and, noticing the way the black paladin tensed up, frowned slightly. "Hey man, it's okay. You don't... you don't have to be worried. If you'll let me, I just wanted to ask some things. You don't have - "

He was cut off by Keith shaking his head, stopping only to rest his violet eyes on Lance. "No," he said, he voice still more rough than usual. "I've been... I've been hiding from you guys long enough. Shiro said it would cause problems, and I guess he was right."

"Shiro's always right," Lance offered, smiling sympathetically.

Keith let out a strained chuckle. "Tell that to Kuron."

"Kuron is not Shiro," the red paladin mumbled, his voice suddenly grave. He still hadn't told Keith about the abuse he went through under Kuron's leadership, though the rest of the team knew. He'd seriously have to tell Keith someday, but today wasn't that day. He shook his head, turning his attention back to Keith. "But that doesn't matter right now. You're what matters. And how I can help you matters. So I... I just want to make sure I know what's going on."

"Go ahead and ask, Lance," Keith said, turning to look at the door, which was conveniently on the other side of where the Cuban boy was currently sitting. "Just..." he whispered, reaching out his right hand, not looking. "Please hold my hand."

Lance's heart softened incredibly at that, and he instantly took Keith's hand in his own, reflecting with surprise that the fingerless gloves weren't there. He took a breath, planting a kiss on the pilot's knuckles.

"That tank you were wearing... it was a binder, right?"

Keith nodded, an almost silent "yes" escaping his lips. "How do you know what that is?"

Lance paused for a moment. "Pidge wore one at the academy and, uh, before I realized she was a girl," he said, a gentle chuckle escaping his mouth. "She still has it just in case, but she's outgrown it and rarely wears it but... I'm getting off track, aren't I?"

The older paladin nodded.

"The thing Shiro wanted you to tell us has to do with the binder, right?"

He nodded again.

Lance squeezed Keith's hand reassuringly before he asked the next question. "You're trans, aren't you?" he said, voice hardly audible.

But Keith heard it. He heard those words that he himself hated saying because, god dammit, he was born wrong. Lance was right, though. So he nodded slowly, turning his head further away from Lance as he began to cry silent tears, feeling like the world was crumbling around him.

"Yeah. I'm trans... and I'm sorry for not telling you earlier," he muttered, wiping his face with one of Shiro's sleeves. He looked back at Lance. "Especially you. You've trusted me with so much, and if you don't feel comfortable with some freak in your bed crying his eyes out, I understand..."

Before Keith could work himself up again, Lance pulled him into a hug, pressing the smaller man's head into the crook of his neck. Though surprised at first, Keith eventually relaxed into the hug, wrapping his shaking arms around Lance's back, lowering his head to snuggle deeper into the hug. Only when Lance was sure Keith had calmed down did he begin to speak.

"Please don't call yourself a freak, Keith," Lance said, voice low. "You're one of the most amazing people I've ever met. I couldn't care less how you were born or what your body looks like now." He backed away from the hug, looking into Keith's still gleaming eyes. He gave a small smile, pushing back the hair on Keith's forehead so that he could kiss the pale skin there. "All I care about is that you're safe and not hurting. But apparently I missed the last one," Lance joked. He wiped the tears from Keith's face with his thumb. "Thank you for finally telling me and coming to me for help. You do know the rest of the team won't care though, right?"

Keith nodded, lying back on his stack of pillows and looking at the sting lights decorating Lance's room. Though he'd never admit it, he absolutely adored said lights. "I know that you guys wouldn't care, but I worked myself into a panic whenever I thought about telling anyone," Keith admitted. "And when Shiro left, I closed everyone off. Then Kuron took Shiro's place and I confided in him like I used to Shiro, and..."

"He used it against you?" Lance suggested quietly.

"Yeah, exactly that. Hence why I've been more closed off than usual," he said, trying to make a joke of the situation as Lance typically would, though it only came off an bitterness. Those few weeks with Kuron around before he went off with the blade were some of the worst of his life. He should have known something was off when the clone kept fucking with his binder or making snide comments, but his self-esteem was shallow enough that he believed Kuron's words without a second thought.

Lance shook his head. "You've been suffering this all alone and you never told us? Keith, you know we'd never hurt you."

The black paladin nodded, playing with the strings on Shiro's hoodie. "It's not like being Galra, I guess. Allura and Pidge won't be sour towards me because of it..."

"Dude, Pidge's older brother is trans," Lance said, brightening up slightly. "She can like, totally help you with anything you need."

"Wait, you know that about Matt? How?" was all Keith could manage.

Letting out a cough, the younger of the two shook his head as a pink tint began to pepper his tanned cheeks. "I was kind of... obsessed with Shiro, back on earth," he admitted. Keith let out a snort as he remembered, and Lance shot him a look. "Anyways, before the Kerberos mission, they brought the team to give a presentation for everyone at the Garrison. You remember that, right?"

Keith nodded, smiling faintly at his time in the Garrison - especially the time he punched Iverson in the face. When Shiro had disappeared, everything went downhill, but at the time Lance was recalling, everything was going perfect.

"Well, I met Matt, and went to look him up in some of the old yearbooks. Turns out he's only about three years older than me, so it didn't take long to find him," Lance explained. "In the old yearbooks, despite looking relatively the same, he had the name 'Maddison' written under his picture instead of 'Matthew'. So I haven't really spoken to him about it, but..."

"So you found out by snooping and talking to Pidge," Keith concluded, a teasing smirk on his face.

Lance nodded. "You haven't talked much to him since the Kuron incident, have you?"

"Nah," Keith replied, playing with the strings again. "He was dating Shiro back before Kerberos, and I'm Shiro's cousin. We both... I think we were both affected a bit by that. He's working with the rebellion for a while anyways."

"Pidge could always put you in contact," Lance suggested.

He shook his head again. "He knows I'm trans; we were close back when they were in the Garrison. There's nothing he can do, though. We aren't on earth."

"No, but there are a lot of earthlings that can help you out, you emo little shit," the Cuban boy teased, flicking Keith's forehead. His expression suddenly softened, and he turned Keith to face him with the gentle pull of his hand. "I really do think you should tell the others. I can't help you like they can. I'm not smart enough to do that."

Tencing up, Keith slowly nodded, letting out a shaking breath as he ran a hand through his hair.

"You may not be the smartest, but you're the first one I'd come to for help. I'll tell them at breakfast," he concluded. "I wonder if Lotor will be there."

"Do you want him to?" Lance asked.

The older of the two shrugged. "He's also half Galra. These things might affect us differently. So, I guess it's important."

Nodding slowly, Lance turned over to check his phone. It read 3:06 in bright white letters, and he turned back to Keith. "We should get back to sleep. Do you want to stay in here tonight? You haven't in a while."

A chuckle escaped Keith's throat. Breakfast was in three hours, and he really didn't feel like being alone right now. He was still shaking, after all.

"I'll stay in here," he said, tossing most of the pillows to the floor so that he could lie down flat on his back.

Within a second, Lance was next to him, wrapping his left arm under Keith's head, as though it were a pillow. He let out a content sigh, pressing a kiss to Keith's cheek, which glowed a pale white in the dimly-lit room.

"You're really touchy tonight," Keith said, joking slightly.

A small hum of approval escaped Lance's threat. "I really just want to kiss you. I'm proud of you for telling me. And, you know, I still feel the same as I did last time you were here..."

He was referencing two weeks ago, when Keith had gotten drunk off his ass out of sadness, and wandered into Lance's room to cry. Keith remembered all of it, even the part where Lance confessed he was in love with him.

But Keith wasn't one to let people know things easily.

"What do you mean, 'two weeks ago'," Keith questioned, sounding serious as always. Of course, he knew exactly what he was doing.

"Okay, no. I know what you're doing," Lance pouted, sitting up on his elbows and peering down at the man next to him. "You are not going to pretend I didn't tell you how madly in love with you I am." He knew exactly what he was going as well.

"Even if I'm trans?"

Keith's words hung in the air, thick and palpable. Of course, he hadn't meant for the words to come out so harshly, but that was simply how he spoke a lot of the time.

But Lance understood this.

"Dude, I'm bi," he said a more relaxed tone laced in his voice as he pressed a kiss to Keith's cheek, going to lie down next to him again. "I couldn't care less whether you're trans or cis. You're still the same Keith I fell in love with."

Keith snorted in amusement. "You do not get to say you're in love with me than call me dude."

"Says the guy who says _y'all_ and _ain't_ ," Lance teased.

"Lance, I'm from Texas," the half-Galra chuckled, playfully slapping at Lance. "Leave me alone."

"But seriously," Lance said, catching Keith's hand and pulling it up to his lips. He kissed his knuckles, one at a time, before continuing. "I really do like you, Keith. And I know this is kind of a weird time to say it, but you said something big so I guess I might as well, so... yeah."

Keith smiled in response, leaning over to kiss Lance's check. His skin was incredible soft compared to his own perpetually dry lips, and he couldn't help but flush as he pulled back.

"I do as well," he said, voice low. "But I really just want to get to sleep now, Lance. We can talk more tomorrow, okay?"

Lance nodded, content with the answer. "Can I hug you while we sleep?"

Immediately, Keith shook his head. "No. I'm sorry. You'd feel... my chest, and I really don't - "

Lance lifted a hand, signaling for Keith to stop. "Hey, it's okay. You're resting on my arm, you said you like me, I'm fine," he mused, grabbing Keith's hand with his free hand before Keith could say anything else.

Keith wouldn't have anyways.

 

* * *

 

The next morning, breakfast is pretty much the same: Pidge scrolling lazily through her laptop as she guzzled coffee, Allura and Coran engaged in conversation, Lance and Hunk joking around or making breakfast (if they had something other than food-goo), Keith eating quietly. The only real change of pace was Lotor. Sure, he occasionally came to breakfast, but it wasn't too regular of an occurrence. According to Coran, he would come into the kitchen at night to have leftovers or sneak food from behind the other's backs when they weren't looking.

Everyone was more cautious with their food since Coran told them all, and Lotor began coming to meals more often.

Out of nowhere, Coran suddenly made a somewhat jolting sound, setting down the Altean equivalent of coffee that was in his hands. He turned to Keith, eyes wide.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" he nearly shouted, drawing the attention of the others and pointing the spork he was stirring the drink with in Keith's direction. "I was reviewing the cameras to see who stole Hunk's crème brûlée or whatever it's called - by the way, Lotor, stop eating the good quiznacking food."

Lotor looked up from his bowl of cereal, making a slurping sound as he drank a spoonful of milk.

"Anyways," Coran said, turning back to Keith and seemingly forgetting the exchange with Lotor. "I saw you collapsed outside of Lance's room last night after stumbling down the hall. What happened?"

"You're okay, right?" Allura instantly questioned, their conversation from the night before clearly making its way into her mind. "Your breathing was incredibly shallow. I told you, didn't I?"

"I knew someone was in the hall, didn't know who, though," Lotor commented, bringing a spoon that actually contained cereal up to his mouth.

Keith let out a huff at the sudden commotion. "If you'd let me talk, I could answer," he said, slight annoyance picking at his words. When no one else spoke, he took another breath, this one more cautious and full of nerves. The others seemed to catch this and turned their attention to him even more.

"I actually have to tell you all something."

Lance looked over to him, a reassuring smile on his face. He gripped his hand under the table, giving a little squeeze to let him know he'd be okay.

"Last night, I woke up, unable to breathe," he said, trying to steady his voice. He heard a little gasp from the others, but continued speaking. "I was out of it, and before I knew it, I was at Lance's door. He really helped me out."

"You stopped breathing?" Allura gasped, eyes wide in shock. "Keith, why didn't you tell us? We need to run some tests and - "

"Princess, I thank you for your concern," Keith said, trying to cut her off and kindly as he could. It earned him another squeeze from Lance. "But the reason I couldn't breathe was due to my own stupidity."

"Don't call it that," Lance chided.

"God, let the man talk, holy shit," Pidge hissed from behind her laptop, where she was currently downing her third cup of coffee since waking up.

Keith chuckled as Hunk scolded her for her profanity, and turned to everyone else again. "Anyways, despite my better judgement, I wore a piece of clothing called a chest binder for four and a half days straight, which caused the problem." He heard Pidge's laptop snap shut before turning to look at Hunk and Pidge, who were both wide-eyed. "I'm sorry if it caused any of y'all concern."

"No fucking way," Pidge gaped, ignoring the scolding remark she got from Hunk. "Four days? Keith, are you trying to kill yourself? While sleeping? And exercising? You've been wearing it on all our missions? Since we got into spa - "

"Pidge," Hunk said gently, placing a hand on her shoulder. "He's not done. The others have no idea what this means."

Smiling gratefully at Hunk, he turned to the two who didn't understand: Coran, and Allura. Both looked confused, but Lotor just seemed bored.

"Why bind your chest?" Allura asked, tilting her head. "Human males have flat chests, right?"

Coran nodded to confirm.

"Generally speaking, yes," Keith replied, trying to keep his voice from shaking. "Unless you're like me. Unless you were... born a girl."

For the second time today, his words hung in the air. The humans all seemed to understand, and confusion changed to excitement on the Altean's faces. Lotor went back to his coffee now that his cereal was finished, looking bored.

"Is that supposed to be a surprise?" Lotor asked, taking a sip from his sweetened drink.

The others seemed to stare like he was ridiculous. That only caused him to look away, embarrassed.

"You see, Galra can smell a lot better than humans and Alteans, which I assumed you'd know," he said to Keith, though there was no maliciousness in his voice. "It's just that, occasionally, you smell like the small one." Pidge seemed to cringe along with Keith.

"Please, never say that again," Keith asked, both his and Pidge's faces screwed up in discomfort.

"Oh, was that rude?" Lotor asked, looking from one to another. "My sincerest apologies. Human culture is still kind of strange to me."

"It's fine, Lotor," Allura said, smiling at him gently. She understood the struggle. "You remember the _állaxe_ on Altea?"

Lotor nodded. "They were called the _degis mis_ in Galran society. Well, they still are," Lotor corrected, returning to his coffee as Coran shot him a look.

Coran turned to Keith, seemingly excited to explain. "If we're reading this right, there are those like you on our planets as well. Not just our planets, but all planets with two sexes, actually," he said, taking a sip from his mug. "Of course, Alteans just shapeshift to fix the disconnect, but the Galra have a much harder time doing so since they can't shapeshift." Lotor nodded, and so did Keith. "And since you're both Galra and human, there's no way you can shapeshift."

"Exactly," Keith said, taking a sip of his coffee. "Which is why I wear a binder. Oh, and on Earth, it's called being transgender."

"But why is your voice so deep?" Allura asked, seemingly very intrigued by this morning's turn of events. Keith couldn't help but chuckle in amusement.

He raised a hand to his throat, rubbing his Adam's apple for reassurance. "While I was on Earth, I injected the hormone called testosterone into my leg once a week. The hormone is prominent in males, and for those like me, we take a synthetic kind to replace the female hormone estrogen," he said, pausing for a second to catch his breath. "Testosterone effects are mostly permanent. Deep voice, thicker hair, and the like can't be changed back. But other things... come back after you haven't taken it for a while. And it's been almost a year for me."

Lotor nodded, though he said nothing. Silently, Keith thanked him for that.

He turned back to Hunk and Pidge, who both looked on like nothing really happened, aside from Pidge's tapping hand, which indicated annoyance.

"You guys?" Keith asked, though he didn't know what he was scared.

Hunk smiled, giving him a thumbs up. "You're still Keith. Never had a problem with that stuff man, though I think Pidge is pissed at you."

"I am," Pidge snapped, sucking down a large gulp of coffee.

"Oh, and why's that?" Keith questioned, ready for the storm that was ready to come his way. Matt had told him too many times about how angry Pidge would get at him for wearing his binder too long, and he was mostly prepared for what he was about to get.

Pidge took a breath, seemingly trying to center herself before she tore into him. "Four-and-a-half days. Of wearing. Your binder. Keith, I know you know Matt is trans, and I know that you also have seen how sick he would get from wearing his binder. Trust me, he would talk about you a lot," she said, her fingers still tapping against the table. "Keith, you can't do that. You should have come to us sooner so you didn't get this hurt. You're gonna have to take a break for at least a few - please tell me you're not wearing right now."

Both Keith and Lance avoided her gaze.

"That's it," she hissed, jumping up from her spot and marching over to Keith. Pulling him to his feet, Pidge looked up slightly to meet his surprised expression. "Your room, now. You're taking that off and resting for today."

Keith rolled his eyes.

"Look, Keith," Allura said from across the table, her voice soothing. "Coran and I will come by later and talk about making some adjustments to things. From what I gather, you've been wearing that since you came from Earth, right?"

Keith nodded.

And then Pidge slapped the back of his head.

"Keith, you've grown and built muscle since then. It must be so damn tiny!" she scolded.

"Chill for a minute, Pidge," Lance quipped, standing beside Keith and slipping his had to rest comfortably on his back. The feeling made Keith jump. "He's been horrified to tell us since we got here. That's a year of being stressed to all hell... more, if you count the Garrison." Pidge and Hunk nodded, recalling vaguely their time together there. "You should probably stop being so pissy for just a few minutes."

Shouts of "I was not _horrified_!" and "I'm just looking out for him!" took up the dining room at the same time.

"Pardon me for asking," Coran interjected, raising his hand as though he were asking his teacher a question. "But why would you be scared to tell us all such a thing?"

Looking towards the door, Keith shook his head in exasperation, a sigh escaping his lips. "I'm not really sure. I knew these guys wouldn't mind," he said, gesturing to the other earthling paladins around him. "Especially not Pidge, with her brother and all. And I didn't think you guys would care either, but life on Earth is very different from life up in space, be it for better or for worse. People will hurt you, abandon you..."

His father. Leaving.

"Because you're different."

The others were quiet. Keith didn't realize it at first, but his eyes were now glossy with fresh tears, and everyone else had seen. Before he could leave, however, Lance pulled him into a hug, followed by Pidge and Hunk. He let out quiet sobs that quickly turned into laughs and chuckles of joy as the others laughed along with him.

"Thanks for telling us," Hunk said as he let go, giving him a clap on the back.

Pidge nodded. "We'll do our best to help you out."

Lance was the last to let go, letting his hands brush against Keith's before intertwining his fingers, grinning madly when Keith didn't pull away. "I told you it would be fine."

Keith feigned a pout, then smiled as he turned to look at his teammates - no - his friends. "I know. Thanks guys."

Allura, Coran, and Lotor sit at the end of the table, watching with a mixture of curiosity, happiness, and and relief. Though they didn't say it, Allura and Coran knew that they both were going to be doing their best to help the black paladin in the only way they knew how: making him feel more at home and helping him with any of the medical necessities that came up. That went for Matt now too, apparently.

Lotor shook his head, a hint of pride in his voice as he spoke about his fellow half-breed. "He's certainly gone through a lot. No wonder he's the black paladin."

**Author's Note:**

> Hey there everyone! I've finally gotten back into writing after a very long time, so I don't expect this to be the best piece I've ever done. If you want to add any kind of criticism or any comment in general, please do so, as any feedback is much appreciated. 
> 
> I myself am I transguy, so I've got a bit of experience with binders being... too tight. Keith's experience is based off of mine, though I didn't have anyone when I was panicking. Luckily, Keith has his whole team.
> 
> Well, that's that! If y'all have anything to tell me, just comment away!


End file.
